Porto president Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa said in March Chelsea had to match the club's valuation to stand any chance of signing the striker.

"I've said it before, we would not sell Hulk and therefore Chelsea must activate his contract," Da Costa said.

"We know there is lots of interest from Europe, but the player has told me privately Chelsea is his preferred destination."

The highly rated Brazil international, who has five goals in 13 appearance for his country, has enjoyed a stellar spell in front of goal at Porto, scoring 23 league goals in the 2010/11 season.

Chelsea's advantage in the race to sign Hulk appears to have hinged on the club's Champions League victory, which subsequently saw them qualify for next season's competition as holders.

Their victory on penalties against Bayern Munich certainly seemed to turn the head of Eden Hazard, who decided on joining The Blues after their historic win, and it appears Hulk has been attracted in similar fashion.

The signing of the pair, on top of the Champions League win would be a decent representation of Di Matteo's success as interim boss, and his reward upon earning a permanent deal is the opportunity to work with these star players as the Italian attempts to bridge the gap domestically.